Loneliness in tech

I'll preface this with a quick bit about me: I've been a remote worker for just over 5 years now, typically I'll try to go to the office once a week. This is certainly something I have had to deal with.

With recent world events looking to increase the number of people working from home, particularly with the added difficulty of lockdowns reducing opportunities for social interaction, this is a topic worth discussing.

I'll list a couple of things I've done over the years to help with loneliness, but I'm really interested in hearing what tips and advice the community has to offer.

Join online communities

I mean actively; not passively lurking. Be it Twitter, Reddit, dev.to, Slack, Discord, or anywhere. Start the conversation or join in. You're here, reading this! Drop something in the comments.

Get some fresh air

I appreciate the irony in this. Usually my advice would be to seek out places you could work outside of a home office occasionally, e.g. co-working space or coffee shop; however, this becomes much more difficult where everything but essential travel is restricted.

Even if you have a garden space, no matter how small, it can help to get out and take in that fresh air. Even if it is just an open window.

Favour video rather than audio only

Seems like a no-brainer but for the longest time meetings and informal chats were always audio only for me.

What advice do you have for dealing with loneliness? What experiences have you had?

I'm more than happy to have a natter on Twitter with anyone, about anything @thatonejakeb.